I'm Already There
by sweet-destiny3
Summary: When are you coming home Daddy?" Will Scott ever be able to see his family again? Will he survive without them? Based on the song "I'm Already There" by Lonestar. JOTT. R&R! Full of Fluff.


**Disclaimer** I wish I owned them. The pleasure I would have…but does it look like I'm happy? Good then, I don't own them.

**Author's Note** First, this is a one-shot. Next, I love you guys! All the readers on fanfiction. I appreciate all of you. I hope that you appreciate me in the same way and review my story. I feed off on reviews and I enjoy hearing what comments readers have after they read. To know their reactions and expressions (in words) to the stories they read is a wonderful thing. Need I go on? I didn't think so….so review! I also wanted to thank my sister for inspiring me in everything that I do. I never feel stupid around her no matter what. She always gives me constructive criticism about my stories and I love that. I know your reading this…thank you. For the rest of ya, read review and ENJOY!!!

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**I'm Already There **

**By Lonestar**

He called her on the road,

From a lonely cold hotel room,

Just to hear her say "I love you" one more time,

And when he heard the sound,

Of the kids laughing in the background,

He had to wipe away a tear from his eye,

Little voice came on the phone,

And said, "Daddy when you comin' home,"

He said the first thing that came to his mind,

I'm already there,

Take a look around,

I'm the sunshine in your hair,

I'm the shadow on the ground,

I'm the whisper in the wind,

I'm your imaginary friend,

And I know,

I'm in your prayer,

I'm already there,

She got back on the phone,

Said, "I really miss you darlin",

Don't worry about the kids they'll be alright,

Wish I was in your arms,

Lying right there beside you,

But I know that I'll be in your dreams tonight,

And I'll gently kiss your lips,

Touch you with my fingertips,

So turn out the lights,

And close your eyes,

I'm already there,

Don't make a sound,

I'm the beat in your heart,

I'm the moonlight shining down,

I'm the whisper in the wind,

And I'll be there til the end,

Can you feel,

The love that we share,

I'm already there,

We may be a thousand miles apart,

But I'll be with you,

Wherever you are,

I'm already there,

Take a look around,

I'm the sunshine in your hair,

I'm the shadow on the ground,

I'm the whisper in the wind,

And I'll be there til the end,

Can you feel,

The love that we share,

Oh I'm already there,

Oh I'm already there.

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**I'm Already There**

Day 31:

The loud sound of wood against wood echoed in his ears. The gravel made a loud thud upon the high stand where the judge belonged. The sound of the movement of people hit his back like a cold ice burg. Chatter filled the courtroom, water filled his eyes. Where no one could see.

Listening and waiting was all he could do. His throat became dry when he heard the voices that would determine the verdict. He placed his hands over his face and rubbed his fingertips against his forehead. His muscular knuckles fell over each other and rested beneath his chin. His jaw clenched, his face was forward, and his senses alert, he could not help spot and notice everything around him. Including the cold brown eyes staring at him from the side with hatred. But he did not turn once to look at a man that sat in the same courtroom, involved in the same case, with completely different thoughts and perspectives.

"This case is hereby postponed until nine a.m. tomorrow morning," the judge spoke firmly as she got up from her seat and slammed the gravel down once, but hard. "Court dismissed."

"Don't worry too much," his lawyer assured him with a not so convincing voice, "there's still hope."

A hard expression came from the man as he looked at his lawyer and sighed, "That's what the good professor used to say. And today I'm here." He was here in Washington D.C. The incident had happened in New York. The man who had claimed him to be guilty lived in Washington, brought the case to Washington, and dragged him to Washington. About five hours away from New York and many miles away from his family.

With a stern look and quiet mouth he walked away from the lawyer and down the thin isle. He passed the empty seats on his right, where he had been sitting, and he passed the people giving nasty stares on the left. Would the judge or the jury even look at him twice? To know if they put him in jail for "lack of evidence" how much of a story this man has of his life. Who has touched his lips, who has protected his heart, who has kept his soul going, what fists his face had been met with? No. They just uttered the words "guilty as charged" and that was the end. The end of his life, but just another day in the people of the court's life. Just an ordinary day. The moment he walked out of the courtroom a woman might be giving birth, a man may be murdered. As he walked down the steps someone could be in surgery or enjoying a day in the park or at the beach.

He pulled out his cell phone. What _he_ would do on an ordinary day. He dialed the number as fast as his fingers went. The number his mind knew with memorization of the heart, like his body knew how to breathe. "Hello? Rachael Summers speaking," a young voice spoke on the other end. His heart and mind were overjoyed with happiness. His heart leapt to his throat as if hearing her voice was Heaven. "Hello?" the sweet, seven year old voice spoke with innocence.

"Hey sweetheart," he said with a large smile and great hope in his eyes, "it's Daddy. How many times do I have to tell you not to pick up the phone?" He told her this, although he loved to hear her voice any time, as a father's discipline. His left hand was lying limply at his side as he began to walk back to his car.

"Mommy, Mommy, it's Daddy, it's Daddy!!!" Rachael exclaimed happily and quite loudly into his ears. He winced at the sound but smiled hard at Rachael's energy. Just like her mother. He had never believed he would be able to smile after he had lost his parents and brother at a very young age. But life is a funny thing. One of his roles in life was being an uptight and serious leader. Another role was being an uptight father. He could not begin to differentiate the gap between those two.

He waited a minute or two for Rachael to get herself together and get her mother on the phone, after her jumping died down. To think that their daughter had telepathic and telekinetic abilities was a scary feeling sometimes. While he waited, he started to scan the parking lot and suddenly spotted what stood out in his eyes. The man who had brought this burden and this trip to him. He was sitting in the driver's seat of a black BMW with a phone in one hand and a cigarette in another. His lips were moving rapidly as smoke escaped them as well as a huge smile. He presumed the man was talking to his ex-wife and the now paralyzed daughter that made this case existent.

But he knew whether or not he was here, this case was something that spread over the world. Stereotype. He had helped the little girl get paralyzed rather than killed with his mutant abilities but had been discriminated against when the man who had almost run over her whole with a fast-speeding car claimed him to be the wrong doer, and added in discrimination towards mutants. Apparently, the man who had put all the blame on him had gotten away, leaving him looking at fault with accusation of stealing a car and a crime of paralyzing a pedestrian. Fortunately, he was bailed out by the good professor who was off for some business in England. The professor knew he could handle it and reassured him that everything would be okay. No one had really seen what happened, not even the girl. But he and the great Lord knew innocence was all he had with him. He had informed his lawyer of what had exactly happened and even he did not believe him. "It's ok. You can tell me the truth. I won't use it against you," the lawyer had said what seemed like such a long time ago. Those were the times when he wanted to crawl into a cage and never come out.

But a soft, whispered breath on the other end of the phone let him feel otherwise. "Scott?"

Scott pursed his lips to breathe the cold air deeply in. He exhaled with a quiet sigh, looking at his frozen breath lingering in the autumn air. He closed his eyes lightly behind his ruby quartz sunglasses. "Jean."

"Things aren't getting better, are they?" Jean asked rhetorically as if she was reading his mind telepathically. But Jean would know without using her powers to sense it. "We want you back home, Scott," Jean whispered with nothing but tenderness and softness in her sweet voice. Scott's heart sank. All the way to his stomach. If he could only do exactly what she had said.

The silence washed over the both of them as Scott heard laughter in the background. The laughter of children. Not just any children. His children. He cringed to stop tears from rolling down. He shut his eyes harder and knitted his eyebrows together as the loud and innocent laughter continued. When the laughter faded in the distance it still echoed in his ears and heart. He was about to break-down. For the first time in his life he could not contain his emotions so easily. A single tear slipped down his cold pale face as he wiped it away quickly. He placed both arms over the roof of his car and held the phone as if it was the most important thing in the world. His world at least. "How are you? How are the kids?" Was all Scott could muster at the moment with his slightly shaky voice.

Jean was silent to answer. "It's a little windy tonight," she whispered as Scott heard a window shut and a locking noise sound. He heard her teeth chatter. This made his heart go crazy. How much he wanted to comfort her at the moment and keep her warm.

Scott ran his hand through his hair to try and contain his aggravation. What does a man do when the woman he loves is speaking to him but he cannot touch her or see her face? Scott knew that words were all that he could do at the moment and something was better than nothing. "Whenever the wind whispers, Jean," Scott whispered, "you will hear my voice speak sweet and loving words." With those words warmth rushed through him like the sun rushed over the earth when it rose in the morning. He was not the type of man who would express romantic feelings so freely. But love made people do crazy things.

Scott could almost hear her lips curl together with a plump smile. The smile she always gave him when he would use sweet talk. Scott climbed into the driver's seat and locked the door as if nothing, not even the air, could hear him whisper these words. They were sealed only for Jean's ears to hear and melt in. "What sort of words Mr. Summers?" Jean asked with a whisper and a playful manner.

"Words like," Scott paused to look up at the darkening sky, at the half shaped moon, and out at the somewhat empty parking lot, "don't make a single sound. Just be quiet for one moment to listen. …to the beat of your heart. That's where I am. And……I love you."

"To me, it's thoughts that count. And yours, like you, are beautiful," Jean whispered as Scott inhaled the scent of the car to find a hint of his whole family's scent. This was the time where he wished he had Logan's strong senses. But he still smelled it and it was still there. And still fulfilling. He sulked in Jean's beautiful words and beautiful voice. He savored the moment he could hear her breath for such a brief figment in time. "I love you."

A loud sound suddenly transcended towards Scott's ears as it boomed through the little holes of the cell phone. "Daddy, when are you comin' home? When Daddy?" the voice of his eleven year old boy asked. Scott's heart melted and ached at his words. What was he supposed to tell his own son? He pondered the question that created silence on both ends. "Daddy?"

"Soon Nathan. At least I hope, son," Scott managed to say. "But I can't promise anything, ok?" Scott tried to reassure his son in anyway possible but those words did not seem to have a reassurance. Scott believed that words did not help most of the times. Actions were the things that carved markings of truth into people's heads. But words had an affect right at this moment. It all depended on his expression, and the way he projected the words that explained his emotions.

"What do you mean Daddy?" Nathan's young, little voice asked with confusion and a touch of fear. The short boy that has not yet gone through his growth spurt held the phone with his young and soft hands. His eyes were wide with hope and love. Scott only wished he could see him, even if he only saw red, to just see his son's features instead of imagining them. Why should he imagine his son as if he was a dream? He was not a dream, he was reality. He was Scott's son and a piece of his heart.

Scott tried to find the right words to say to Nathan without making him think he won't be coming home. "Promise me you'll take care of Mommy and Rachael no matter what. Promise me Nathan," Scott said with an insistent, yet tender voice. "Promise me you won't give your Mommy a hard time. Promise me you'll protect your little sister. Promise me."

"I promise Daddy," Nathan said as he handed the phone to his mother. He had looked at her with puppy eyes and a confused face. Jean looked at the phone that sounded with a beeping noise. Over and over. She stared at it blankly and felt goose bumps fill her skin slowly. "Is Daddy coming home Mommy?"

"He already is home," Jean said as she placed her hand on Nathan and Rachael's hearts. Then she place one on her own heart and said, "right in here."

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Scott drove straight ahead. He watched the road full of traffic. He was like a programmed machine looking to both his side view mirrors and then to the front. Then he looked in the rearview mirror. He did these things tentatively with his eyes and hands, but his mind and heart were somewhere else. He drove on the road that lead to the hotel he had stayed in for a month and prayed he would not have to stay here any longer. The food was not homemade, never the way Jean made dinner. The atmosphere was filled with heat but heat coming from the vents instead of children. The rain began to beat against his windshield. Beating steadily at a fast pace. But it did not have the same effect as Jean's heart beating steadily against his.

Scott knew that driving distractedly was not a good thing but this traffic was moving at a very slow pace. He brought out his cell phone and dialed the number once again. The phone rang once before someone picked it up. "Scott?"

"Hey Jean," Scott said with warmth. The house seemed silent now. "Are the kids asleep?"

"Yeah," Jean said as she sighed to release the load on her chest. Scott wished he could hold her. He wished he could kiss her deeply. He wished he could run his fingertips down the side of her face and run his hands through her thick red hair. He longed to hear her voice at the moment, so he waited for her to speak. "The kids will be alright."

Scott let her know that he was smiling lightly. He knew they would be alright but he did not know if he could survive without them any longer. When someone loved a child so much, that someone becomes helpless without them. That someone needs their children more than their children need them. "I forgot one little thing," Scott said as he steered slowly and pumped the gas every two seconds. "I love you." He knew they had said that to each other before, but once was not enough. The cliché says that distance makes the heart grow fonder. Scott knew this to be true. His heart was already fond, now it was about to explode.

"And I, you Scott," Jean said with her perfect punctuality. "I love you." Scott put his cell phone away and drove to the hotel. When he finally reached the hotel, his heart closed up. Everything was glum when your life's fulfillment was miles away.

Ten minutes after Scott reached his lonely, cold room his cell phone rang once more. He picked it up eagerly as he fell on his back towards the cold comforter of the large, yet empty bed. "I really miss you," the voice came from the other end. Scott closed his eyes and tried to imagine Jean's beautiful face and his children's smiles. "You know what I was doing before I called and what I'll be doing after I hang up?" Jean asked with a whisper. Scott wrapped his arms around himself to try and remember the feeling of him in his wife's arms. But it did not feel the same. He turned his head to the side to see emptiness. A cold chill ran up his spine and his teeth began to chatter lightly.

"What's that?" Scott asked slowly before Jean heard him shivering. He did not want to make her heart ache just because his did.

"I was praying for you," Jean whispered as she fell onto her empty bed, over the covers. "And Scott,"

"Yeah Red," Scott said, interrupting her with a cocky look on his face, "what's on your mind?"

"Many things," Jean whispered even lighter this time with a slightly cracked voice. "Don't hold back from me. No matter if you do or don't, my heart is still aching." Scott's eyes widened with surprise and then calmed down to shut again. It really was not a surprise that Jean could read his mind when she was so far away. Their connection was so strong, yet Scott felt like it was fading every time he entered that glum court room. "I love you."

"Love you too," Scott finished as they both hung up. Not a day went by without him picking up his phone more than once and ending the conversation with those three words.

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Scott sat down next to his lawyer and sipped his water. All the chatter continued like it had for the past month. Same old chatter, don't these people have families of their own? What about the judge and the jury? He looked straight ahead at the two stands up front as he usually did. Back home, Nathan and Rachael have probably learned many new things in school and something new about their powers. Jean could have bought new clothes and changed the way she puts her hair. She could have been improving her skills and powers and studying more out of that medical book she has. But it was different here. The same thing almost everyday for the past month. A whole month!

"Order in the court!" the judge said as she slammed the gravel down hard to quiet the rowdy people down. She took a seat and adjusted herself before they started. But interrupted by a security guard standing to the side she accepted the file he had handed her. Silence rang through the courtroom as Scott intently watched her read the papers inside. "The license plate number of the car was tracked down and they finally found the owner. The man guilty of the crime seemed to have confessed to a hit and run." Loud noise was distributed equally throughout the courtroom. But Scott was silent. His eyebrows had shot up and his eyes widened where no one could see. A wave of joy filled his body as his heart leapt chaotically. "Order! Order!" the judge exclaimed. "This case is officially dismissed."

Scott shook hands with the lawyer in respect as he walked up to the judge, ignoring those who were asking 'how could a mutant be innocent?'. "Judge Brown?" Scott asked with curiosity. She looked to him sympathetically. "He confessed just like that?"

"He had confessed after being caught on a high speed car chase with the police," the judge said. "The man had stolen the car that had hit the little girl. The real owner of the car identified the man by image. The man appears to be a car thief."

"Have a good life judge. I don't hope to see you soon," Scott said with respect as the judge smiled for the first time Scott had seen. "I'm going home."

"Me too, Mr. Summers," the judge said with agreement. "Me too."

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The black BMW had been found in Scott's rearview mirror many times on the way home. Scott had shrugged it off and kept on driving. Non-stop. He wanted so badly to surprise his family. He wanted to lift Rachael into his arms, wrap Nathan in a big bear hug, and kiss Jean's sweet lips, forever. He drove at a steady pace, when what he really wanted to do was go through the grass and trees as a short cut. Someone was watching over them from up above. A certain woman with a good heart had helped with beautiful words people call prayers.

After hours of driving on highways with other cars people were oblivious of their destinations, Scott finally made it. It was dark and there was a breeze blowing through his slightly open window. The moon was shining brightly and Scott saw the shadow of his house on the ground. He looked towards the shadows of his children in the window jumping up and down with the televisions lights beating back and forth. He walked up to the door with all his might. He even felt like he was jogging. Soon he would be running like he was running a marathon.

He knocked on the door. "Get back kids," he heard Jean's voice say. It was so close. He could finally reach out his hands and touch her. The door opened with the chain still locked on it. Jean's glistening green eyes opened widely with love and warmth. "Scott!!!" Jean exclaimed as she opened the door and jumped on him. She wrapped her legs around his stomach as he swung her around and began to kiss her in short and breathless kisses.

"Daddy!!! Daddy!!! Daddy!!!" Rachael exclaimed as Jean got down and Scott juggled her in one arm. Rachel lifted her hands towards him with a happy face. A face that said what she usually told him, "You lifted Mommy and she's a big girl. No doubt you can lift me, a small girl."

"Not just _any_ little girl," Scott said with happiness at the sight of his family. Heaven to normal eyes and something more to sore eyes, "_my_ little girl!" He lifted her onto the back of his neck where her legs swung down from his shoulders. He hurried inside with both of his women close to him as he caught a flying football with one hand. He looked to Nathan who had a face of anger. His eyebrows were knitted together. Scott and Jean looked at each other. Scott threw the ball towards Nathan as Nathan caught it with a smile.

"Just making sure it's really you," Nathan said with a high pitched voice as he ran to his father and hugged him around the waist, where he reached up to. Scott patted his son tenderly on the back. He turned to Jean and placed a long kiss on her pink lips. The sweet taste of her came back to his senses. That's when he knew he was really home.

"Just in time for dinner," Jean said as she motioned towards the kitchen with her hand.

"Homemade food!!!" Scott yelled like a child that loves candy. He had to admit, he has never acted like this in his life. But he deserved to act the way he wanted. With his family.

"Grandfather Xavier and Uncle Logan and Auntie Ororo and Auntie Rogue and Auntie Kitty and Uncle Kurt and Uncle Beast are all coming for dinner tomorrow night. They're-bringing-everyone-else-the-day-after-that-isn't-that-great-Daddy-isn't-that-great!!!" Rachel exclaimed in an ongoing sentence. Scott nodded with a smile as Rachel brought herself down telekinetically. "I'm going to be an X-man one day. Fight crimes and stuff. For the good of mankind."

"That's wonderful hon," Scott said with a laugh at the girl's craziness. "She gets it from you." He looked to Jean as she looked back with a gaping mouth.

"Mr. Summers, you did not just say that," Jean rambled as they all made their way to the kitchen. As they all sat down calmly, except for their mouths. All three of them kept talking and talking. Scott loved it.

A knock at the door sounded. Jean began to get up but Scott insisted. He opened the door to expect one of the X-men. But it was the man he had been on trial with. He looked at him solemnly as he felt Jean's hand lying on his shoulder. The man brought his hand out in mid-air waiting for Scott to embrace it.

Scott's hand went into the man's hand with a handshake as the man tapped it twice with respect.

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**Author's Note** REVIEW!!! REVIEW!!! REVIEW!!! I can't tell you more than once because this is a one-shot. So please review.

"To me, it's thoughts that count. And yours, like you, are beautiful," is something that Jean says to Scott in the comics.


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